Fresh Start Recovery

02/26/2026

February isn’t a restart. It’s the part of the year where the newness wears off and real life shows up again.

In recovery, that’s where the work gets honest, and where people quietly prove what they’re made of.
This month, across Calgary, Lethbridge, and online, we celebrated February milestones and the people doing the work behind the dates.

To everyone who reached a milestone in February: congratulations. You didn’t stumble into this. You earned it. One decision at a time. On the calm days, and the chaotic ones. On the days you felt strong, and the days you didn’t, but showed up anyway.

If you received a tile, jersey, or milestone recognition, take it in. It’s not just a marker. It’s evidence. You kept your feet moving forward. And whether you meant to or not, you also gave someone else a reason to believe they can do it too.

We’re proud of you. Keep coming back.

02/26/2026

Gratitude, Built on Solid Ground

This Friday at 1:15 PM in Calgary, we gather to celebrate a new group reaching an important moment in their recovery journey at Fresh Start.

There’s something fitting about this photo. The Calgary skyline behind them. Cold air. Solid ground under their feet. Arms around each other. Recovery looks a lot like this. You stand together. You face forward. You build something stronger than what tried to take you out.

The skyline doesn’t rise overnight. It’s built beam by beam. Recovery is the same. Honest conversations. Hard days. Small wins. Showing up again. And again.

What you see here isn’t just a group. It’s strength beside strength. Community in real time. Gratitude not as a feeling, but as a decision to keep going.

This is what Together in Recovery looks like.

Our Lethbridge community and friends beyond are welcome to join in person or online so we can celebrate together.

Join us for lunch or request the livestream link by emailing Rene@freshstartrecovery.ca

02/24/2026

February Alumni Milestones

This Wednesday at 6:30 PM, we gather to celebrate our February Alumni Milestones.

Milestones matter. Not because of the number, but because of what it represents. Daily decisions. Honest work. Staying when it would have been easier to run. Growth that does not always show on the outside, but changes everything on the inside.

When alumni, current clients, staff, friends, and family come together, something steady happens. Hope becomes visible. The person with one day sees the person with years. The person with years remembers exactly where they started. That connection keeps this community strong.

Join us in Calgary or Lethbridge in person if you can. If you need the virtual link, email Rene@freshstartrecovery.ca

Recovery is built in rooms like this.
We look forward to seeing you there.

02/20/2026

Gratitude, Shared Forward

Today in Lethbridge, we celebrated our newest group completing their first recovery phase at Fresh Start. This is not the end. It’s a turning point.

Recovery grows in connection. Peers walking together. Staff staying steady. Alumni showing what’s possible. Community showing up when it matters.

Early on, a lot of people are still borrowing belief. Borrowing it from the group. From someone with more days. From someone who won’t let them quit. That’s okay. Over time, that belief becomes theirs.

To our newest alumni, keep going. Stay close to your people. Keep doing the next right thing. And when you’re ready, sit with someone new and help them feel less alone.

Connection, reflection, and growth.

02/19/2026

Congratulations to our newest group celebrating Gratitude this week.

This photo says it well. A steady dock, cold water, wide sky, and a group standing close. Recovery is a lot like that. You do not control the weather. You build your footing. You stay connected. You take the next step anyway, even when it feels shaky. Over time, what used to feel impossible starts to feel steady, because you are not doing it alone.

Our Gratitude celebration will be held on Friday at 1:15 PM at Fresh Start Recovery in Lethbridge.

Our Calgary community is invited to gather at the Calgary centre to cheer them on virtually. If you would like to join online, please email Rene@freshstartrecovery.ca
for the link.

02/16/2026

Family is a choice.

We often grow up believing it was chosen for us, but life gives us the chance to redefine the circle. We decide who we trust, who we stand beside, and who we allow to stand beside us.

Recovery is often described as an individual journey. The truth is, very few people get well alone.

Addiction slowly changes how people live together. Conversations shorten. Trust becomes cautious. People begin walking on eggshells or sometimes just stop talking. It is not always a big conflict. Sometimes it is a quiet distance that grows until a house no longer feels like a home.

One of the most meaningful things we witness at Fresh Start is not only a person getting sober. It is people reconnecting. A mother hearing her son laugh again. A child trusting dad’s word again. Two people sitting at a table without tension, just conversation.

When those moments begin to happen, something else follows. People who once needed support begin to offer it. The circle starts to widen.

This weekend, our alumni gathered for their AGM. It was not really a meeting. It was a reminder of what long-term recovery looks like when people stay connected. Individuals who once walked through our doors, unsure if life could change, now come back to help someone else believe it can. They welcome new arrivals, stand beside those completing treatment, and make room for those entering our eclectic Fresh Start family.

Connection is not a bonus part of recovery. Coming together is recovery.

Families do not need to be perfect. They just need a place to start again, the practice of coming together, one honest moment at a time. Every time people choose to sit back down together, healing grows a little stronger.

We are grateful to witness it every day.

02/13/2026

Fresh Start Recovery is drawing our first $1,000 Motorcycle Early Bird prize on Monday.

Deadline to enter is Sunday at midnight. www.freshstartraffle.com

This first Early Bird draw is proudly sponsored by Bow Summit Framing, a trusted company serving residential and commercial building projects throughout Alberta. Their unified approach to framing and prefabrication delivers unmatched speed, precision, and reliability. Check them out at https://bowsummitframing.com/

With your purchase of a motorcycle raffle ticket, you are eligible for:
• $1,000 cash (Earlybird drawn)
• Your name goes back in for ALL remaining draws

Join us for Fresh Start Recovery's 18th Annual 12-Stop Ride for Recovery, Alberta’s Greatest Bike Run. Presented by Grover Law Firm with additional Community Champion sponsors - Cochrane Toyota, Calgary Harley-Davidson, and YourAlberta (Government of Alberta). Where both motorcycles will be drawn live at the close of the Ride on August 15, 2026.

Our message this year is simple: Together, Without End. Because recovery doesn’t happen alone.

Tickets: www.freshstartraffle.com

Motorcycle raffle and 50/50 tickets are separate purchases

02/11/2026

Recovery is not a private battle. It’s a community responsibility.

Click the link below to read the article.

https://calgaryguardian.com/calgary-charity-fresh-start-recovery-centre/

Grateful to see our Executive Director share the heart behind Fresh Start Recovery and our belief that addiction is a community issue with a community solution.

We’ve moved from stigma and silence to coordination, accountability, and long-term recovery. There is still work to do, especially around housing and access, but progress is real. Recovery Alberta and a Recovery-Oriented System of Care are shifting the conversation from crisis response to sustained recovery.

Recovery is possible. It requires structure, dignity, and people willing to stand together.

Join us on August 15 for our 18th Annual 12 Stop Ride for Recovery. Ride. Volunteer. Sponsor. Show up. Recovery happens in community.

Follow Fresh Start Recovery and Fresh Start Raffle to stay connected.

For Bruce Holstead of Fresh Start Recovery Centre, recovery is a collective, community-driven effort.

02/10/2026

Together | Alumni Speaker Meeting | Tomorrow at 6:30 PM

Connection matters. Stories matter. Community matters.

Join us tomorrow evening as we come together across Calgary, Lethbridge, and online for our Alumni Speaker Meeting. This is a space to listen, reflect, and stay connected in recovery.

This week, we’re grateful to hear from Alumni Curtis J., who will share their story and lived experience. These meetings remind us why we show up and why recovery is never meant to be done alone.

When:
Tomorrow at 6:30 PM

Where:
• In person in Calgary
• Live-streamed to Lethbridge
• Online option available

If you’re joining virtually, email Rene@freshstartrecovery.ca to receive the live-stream link.

Whether you’re alumni, staff, family, or part of our wider community, you belong here.

We are

02/07/2026

We’re genuinely grateful to Teamsters Local 362, Teamsters Local 987, and Teamsters Rail Conference for the $60,000 raised through their annual golf tournament.

What matters most is not only the contribution, but what sits behind it. Their support reflects a shared belief that communities take care of their own. The Teamsters Local 362, Teamsters Local 987, and Teamsters Rail Conference continue to stand with us, not just in moments like this but whenever people gather, helping create space for connection, conversation, and belonging.

We value the relationship and the commitment it represents. Together, we continue to show up for people and families, grounded in Gratitude, Generosity, and Community.

02/05/2026

This little piggy showed up.
This little piggy stayed.
This little piggy asked a question.
This little piggy made a guess.
This little piggy bought a ticket.

And before long, one became many.

As the week settles, we’re carrying a lot of gratitude from the weekend.

So many people stopped by our booth, took a moment, made a guess, asked a question, shared a story, or chose to support the work by purchasing a ticket. Those choices matter. They’re how connection forms and how community grows.

Thank you to Calgary Harley-Davidson for donating the dart board and helping create something simple that invited people in and made space for connection.

Thank you to everyone who stopped, smiled, guessed, lingered, or came back again. Thank you again to our other sponsors Grover Law, Cochrane Toyota and the Government of Alberta. We carry that encouragement forward.

Recovery is not built alone.
It’s built together.

02/03/2026

This weekend was a reminder of what can happen when community comes together.

We’re grateful to Grover Law Firm, our legacy sponsor, for their long-standing leadership and belief in this work. Grover has consistently helped create the space for community to come together, not just by supporting events, but by standing behind the values that make connection possible. Their commitment goes beyond visibility or sponsorship. It helps build places where organizations gather, conversations open up, and recovery is welcomed as part of community life. That kind of steady partnership matters, and it continues to shape what is possible.

We value the support and commitment of Cochrane Toyota, Calgary Harley-Davidson, and the YourAlberta (Government of Alberta), who continue to help make this work possible. Each contributing from a different platform and reach, but all share a belief in community and in contributing to solutions that matter. Their involvement helps create the conditions for connection, conversation, and real progress for the people we serve.

We extend our sincere gratitude to our friends across the community and to the many organizations and individuals who continue to support this work. Recovery is not built alone. It grows when people show up for one another, together.

And to everyone who stopped by, whether you came with curiosity, questions, stories, or quiet support: thank you. Every conversation, every shared moment, and every ticket purchased meant more than we can easily put into words. These are the small choices that quietly strengthen community.

Thank you for being part of a weekend that reminded us what community can look like when it’s lived, not just talked about. We invite you to keep that going by supporting our 18th Annual 12 Stop Ride for Recovery, our ongoing raffle, and, most importantly, the mission that drives this work forward.